This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 8/11/2018
Hard to imagine a player whose actual “trip” to the Majors was met with more obstacles than Yasiel Puig. The Cuban import signed with the Dodgers in 2012 for $42 million after a treacherous journey [in his 13th attempt] from his homeland – a story involving Mexican drug cartels and secretive island safe houses with more plot twists than a Michael Mann thriller. Puig debuted with the big club on June 2, 2013, and made an instant splash, hitting four home runs and driving in ten runs to win National League Player of the Week honors in his very first week. “Wild Horse” – as Vin Scully so eloquently dubbed him – continued to impress as a rookie, batting .319 with 19 homers over 104 games and helping the Dodgers win the NL West. Puig looks to build on his solid 2017 campaign in which he set career highs in homers (28), RBI (74), and stolen bases (15) while playing Gold Glove caliber defense in right-field.
Featured here is a significant game-worn road jersey donned by the Cuban star during a pivotal series at Chase Field in late September of his rookie campaign. On September 19, 2013, the Dodgers clinched the NL West division with a 7-6 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks. Puig was quiet at the plate that evening, but he made a couple dazzling plays in right field and was a key catalyst in the Dodgers’ memorable post-game antics. After a shirtless “worm” in the visiting clubhouse that got thousands of YouTube hits, Yasiel and his crew of Champagne-buzzed teammates ran back onto the field where they jumped the right-field fence straight into the Chase Field pool. The famous (or infamous) pool celebration continues to strike a scornful chord in the hearts of D-Backs fans.
The jersey comes with seal-proof documentation from MLB Authentication and a professional photo-match from the experts at Resolution Photomatching. It remains unwashed since the celebration and is missing two buttons, undoubtedly lost during the Chase Field melee. The size 50 gray mesh shirt is properly tagged by Majestic on the left front tail, with an additional “66 Puig 50 2013” label on a strip tag behind the collar. The classic road “Los Angeles” cursive logo is sewn across the chest with “PUIG” and his No. “66” on the reverse, all in blue tackle twill. His number comes in red tackle twill on the front. The shirt displays excellent evidence of game use as mentioned, with an aroma of sweat and perhaps a hint of champagne to go with it. This lot represents a great moment if you’re a Dodgers fan, and certainly is fitting for a guy who plays the game with such youthful exuberance. Nobody seems to have as much fun out there as Yasiel.
MLB Auth. #EK 022434. LOA from Resolution Photomatching with conclusive 9/19/13 photo-match to Getty 181221097.
This lot has a Reserve Price that has not been met.